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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26147881">Just Breathe, My Queen</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TeriTheTacticalUnicorn/pseuds/TeriTheTacticalUnicorn'>TeriTheTacticalUnicorn</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types, The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst and Romance, Attempted Sexual Assault, Caring Thranduil, Declarations Of Love, F/M, Headcanon, Mental Health Issues, Post-Canon, Protective Thranduil, True Love, True Mates</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 11:35:33</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,086</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26147881</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/TeriTheTacticalUnicorn/pseuds/TeriTheTacticalUnicorn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The Ring has been destroyed and Arda is at peace. Can Thranduil's heart and mind be healed by the young Snow Elf Princess who is is One True Love? His Soulmate is still quite young, but she is his fae-match. Legends tell that every elf has their one true match, Ellohir was not Thranduil's match, but she had given him a son, so he had grown to love her. </p><p>     Etírna is one of the many elven words for eternity. She brings light to the Woodland Realm, where for so long there had been darkness. She had not been taught the legends of a true mate, but had seen it between her own parents, and her younger brother. She never realized that the pull towards him would so magnetic.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Gimli (Son of Glóin)/Legolas Greenleaf, Thranduil (Tolkien)/Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Prologue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So I am trying to get away from my modern girl Trope a bit with this, and I'm leagues from my comfort zone. Please let me know what you think in the comments.</p><p>This is a work of fictional HEADCANON! I do not own Tolkien's characters or world, just my own headcanon and characters.</p><p>The song for the Prologue is called Lights by Ellie Goulding</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>       The first time the painted warrior elves of the Northern Realm were seen beyond their Realm was the battle for Gondor. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         Aragorn had to travel through their borders to enlist the help of his ghoulish, oathbound army. King Ethrandor had allowed the Heir of lsildor to pass in good faith, also offering up his own army in defense of the long-allied throne of Gondor.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         The second time the great Valkyrie army was seen was at the gates of Morder. Where men, dwarves, elves and even hobbits joined together while causing a distraction as two tiny hobbits climbed the mountain to throw the One Ring in the fire. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>        All of Middle Earth celebrated as one people when the King of Gondor chose an elven bride. Though now, the painted warrior elf that had caught King Thranduil's eye on the battlefield was not covered in paint.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         Princess Etírna, Commander of the Valkyrie Elven Army, only daughter and heir of King Ethrandor. Her long, dark hair was braided so close to her head, decorated with feathers and jeweled rings. She wore a gown of blue lace and bear fur. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>          When last he saw her, she swung a great axe taller than he was into the skull of a cave troll. He was attracted to her, he couldn't deny. He watched as she animatedly spoke to Legolas. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Ada</span>
  </em>
  <span>, may I introduce King Ethrandor and Princess Etírna. Legolas said as Thranduil stepped up to the gathered elves in the Gondor palace. They had all come to bear witness to King Aragorn and now Queen Arwen's wedding. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>          "A pleasure, King Thranduil. I believe we shared a battlefield in Mordor." She said, her violet eyes sparkled as she curtsied. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "Yes, I believe we have. It is lovely to make your acquaintance." Thranduil said, brushing a light kiss over her scarred knuckles. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We are hosting the Winter Equinox festivities this year, King Thranduil, I hope you will consider joining the celebration.” King Ethrandor said, Thranduil nodded, a small smile gracing his lips as the Snow Elf Princess stepped away from them to speak to the bride, who she seemed to know well.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The rest of his stay in Gondor, he watched her. She dressed how any royal elf should. Her gowns seemed inappropriate for the weather, but the snow elves had been very used to colder than Gondor in the Autumn. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He could not explain the pull in his chest, he had never felt anything like it. She was enchanting, strong, a survivor and warrior. In truth, he saw some of himself in the raven-haired beauty of the North.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Fëa Match</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Fëa-Match: A soulmate, one who is fated to another through the grace of the Valar. </p><p>*Trigger Warning*</p><p>This chapter contains attempted rape and a violent death.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I took some liberties with the headcanon kingdom of the North. I have also had to add the Elvish to English dictionary to my phone... Dedicated.</p><p>Thank you for reading!</p><p>The song for this chapter is I Found by Amber Run</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>*Trigger Warning*</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>This chapter contains attempted rape and a violent death.</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>When the Elvenking rode up to the gates of the grand northern palace, he was in awe. The pure white towers shone in the twilight, and colors danced around them in the clear, starry sky. Large wolves stood proudly, one by each silver-clad guard. The Woodland King would never outwardly admit it, but he never thought much of the Northern Kingdom. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>He had been told that King Ethrandor was a heathen ruler, that his warriors had no training before being thrust into battle. Thranduil now knew that to be false. The Valkyrie Army may have looked like savages, but there was an obvious calculation in their technique. Obvious training in the way the warriors savagery. He had seen it when Etírna buried a giant axe into a horde of Orcs with a thundering battle cry.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>When Thranduil gracefully entered the grand ballroom, his heart nearly stopped.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>The room was made of white and gold marble, silver snowflakes adorned each pillar. But his eyes fell on a beauty he would covet above all else, perhaps even the jewels of Lasgalen. Etírna sat on a glowing throne made of the same jewels he had waited a millenia to retrieve back from Erebor. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>She wore a thin, layered white gown that stopped under her arms and had no sleeves, leather binding acted as a corset and a crown of white diamond snowflakes adorned her black braids. The head of a great white wolf lay in her lap as she pet the beast. Thranduil was pulled from his mindless gawk by someone clearing their throat next to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>“Elvenking. Does my daughter fascinate you so? Or maybe her loyal beast?” Ethrandor asked, sarcasm in his voice as he smirked. He was as tall and well-built as Thranduil himself, though wrinkles had begun to become more pronounced around his eyes, and his hair was that of his daughter, black as a raven's feather.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>“I think she would fascinate many, King Ethrandor. Your daughter is a rare jewel, indeed.” Thranduil said as his son joined him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>“Ada, why don’t we join in the dancing?” Legolas said, trying to get his father alone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <span>“Excuse me, Ethrandor.” Thranduil bowed his head, which was topped with a crown of bare branches. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>           "Ada, the princess has enraptured you. I have never seen you smile so much as since you met her in the Autumn." Legolas said as he and his father gracefully descended the grand staircase to the main floor. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         The rest of the evening went on this way, until Thranduil tried finding his chambers and he heard a chilling scream.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "Come now </span>
  <em>
    <span>princess,</span>
  </em>
  <span> give your captain just a taste." There was a man holding Etírna by her throat in the air, trying to untie his breeches. He did not expect a sword at his throat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "I suggest you take your hands off of her Royal Highness before I remove your head from your miserable body." Thranduil's voice was frightening and as quickly as he'd found her, the red-haired male elf was tripping over himself to get down the corridor. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>        Thranduil returned his weapon to its scabbard and noticed Etírna holding her throat as tears flowed from her unique eyes. "I.. I need to report this. Thank you." She said weakly, trying to stand, but falling into Thranduil's strong arms. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "This will not go unpunished, </span>
  <em>
    <span>isilmë ráka</span>
  </em>
  <span> (Moonlight Wolf)." He shrugged out of his fur-lined robe and placed it around her shoulders. Seeing her cry broke his heart, it had physically pained him to see the terror in her eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         He lifted her gently and let her cry against his chest until she calmed. A guard led Thranduil to the King's chambers.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>          "What happened?" Ethrandor, now fuming as dark bruises began to form around his daughters throat. His booming voice made her flinch as Thranduil held her in front of him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "Hroldiir… he… he…" she broke into heart wrenching sobs once more before Thranduil gently set her on a chaise near the hearth.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>        "The man in question did not ruin your daughter, Ethrandor. He fled after I arrived. I dare say had I not been lost in the corridors looking for my chambers I would not have found her in time." Thranduil explained, pacing with his hands behind him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "I thank you, my friend. Ferrier, please locate and imprison Hroldiir. I will deal with him before tomorrow's celebrations." A blonde guard nodded and left without question, nor immediately closing the door, allowing the great white beast to come and rest on the floor next to its mistress.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         Etírna was shaken, she didn't want Thranduil to see her after saving her virtue the night before. She sat at her vanity in her bathing chambers in a silken robe while Linniel took the braids from her hair.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         The bruises in a dark purple handprint on her throat were ugly. Etírna didn't think they were ugly because of her vanity, they were ugly because Hroldiir had once been her friend. Now he awaited </span>
  <em>
    <span>her</span>
  </em>
  <span> judgement. If Thranduil had not gotten lost and heard her screams, she would be ruined mentally, instead of just bearing a few bruises. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "Would you like new braids after you bathe, your grace?" Her maid asked, but Etírna shook her head. She removed the robe and stepped into the sunken bathing pool silently to bathe. She wanted to scrub away the memory or Hroldiir's hands on her body. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>        Within an hour, Etírna was dressed in a black gossamer gown which left her back bare. She entered the throne room, where her and her father's thrones had been quickly replaced before they woke, from the ballroom. Once she and her wolf stepped up onto the dais, she told her loyal companion to stay, Fàelan obeyed her mistress, sitting to her right. The animal was terrifying when her mistress was in a foul mood.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>        Thranduil stood in the small crowd, his son stood behind him. She sat up straight, crossing her feet and settling her hands in her lap after freeing a gold chain from a knot in her hair as it hung from her circlet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>        When Hroldiir was brought into the nearly bursting throne room, Fàelan growled a deep, warning growl. "Fàelan, </span>
  <em>
    <span>anglenna, echor.</span>
  </em>
  <span> She ordered for Fàelan to circle Hroldiir. A method she knew may have seemed cruel to some of their guests as she sat in her throne and snapped her fingers. The wolf stopped circling and stepped back onto the dais.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>          "Hroldiir Lebrín." Her father's voice boomed as he stood in front of his throne. "You are charged with the attempt to harm Princess Etírna Miruin, Lady of the Ice and heir to the Northern throne. How do you find these accusations?" Ethrandor knew that Etírna would have him executed, no matter his answer. He could see the rage in the violet hues of her eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>          "I find these accusations false, My King. The Princess had started the tryst." He spat, cold eyes looking at Etírna as she stood. Thranduil was about to offer swift justice as a whistle left her lips and the white wolf, suddenly vicious, ripped the elven man's throat out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>          "I do not suffer liars or rapers. Nor does my daughter. Let this be a warning to all." Ethrandor said before nodding to Thranduil, who couldn't help the smirk that graced his lips. It was obvious that someone had injured her, her neck was still very bruised. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         When she left the throne room, Etírna made haste to a balcony that overlooked the icy forest and she let her stoicism go, allowing the tears to fall for quite some time.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>        She was once again encircled by a warm robe, which snapped her mask back over her beautiful face.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "My apologies, King Thranduil." She said, wiping the tears from her eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "To what are you apologizing for, </span>
  <em>
    <span>isilmë ráka</span>
  </em>
  <span>? I would have done much worse to him." The Woodland King admitted, almost nonchalantly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>        "He was once my friend, almost a millennia ago now. I was present for the birth of his daughters. Why would he force my hand, knowing our laws?" She asked, mostly herself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "I do not know, but your father has agreed to allow me to take you with me when I return to the Woodlands." Thranduil said, gently.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>          "And why would he agree to this?" She asked, turning to look into his ice blue eyes. Without warning, Thranduil gently pulled her into his embrace, his hand under her chin as his lips brushed hers and he kissed her. Not a rushed, fervent kiss. It was gentle, loving, protective. She felt </span>
  <em>
    <span>safe</span>
  </em>
  <span>. That pull she had felt for months almost sated by a gentle kiss.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>          "Because Princess. I intend on making you my Queen." He said breathlessly, her breath caught in her throat but she turned her face to his hand and kissed his palm.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "What is this feeling?" She asked, her eyes searching his for the answer.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>         "My </span>
  <em>
    <span>fëa </span>
  </em>
  <span>calling to yours." He said, kissing her in the forehead as she lay her head against his chest.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>          Listening to his heartbeat, she felt she would never be whole without him.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. I Also Know The Feel of Dragon Fire</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Just a filler chapter before a quick jump to Thranduil's palace. Some backstory, some look into our MC's mental state.</p>
<p>*Trigger Warning*</p>
<p>This chapter touches on night terrors, a common accompanying side effect of PTSD.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I would like to say that I am not a Psychiatrist or Psychologist. I know how some people deal with PTSD, Depression and Anxiety because I'm one who deals with it and also who people talk to about their own. Everyone deals with their own mental illnesses in their own way. </p>
<p>This is a PSA to say YOU'RE NOT ALONE, YOUR LIFE HAS VALUE AND YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>*Trigger Warning*</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>This chapter touches on night terrors, a common accompanying side effect of PTSD. </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <span>        The celebrations that eve were magnificent. King Ethrandor announced his decision and that Etírna had accepted the Elvenking's offer of marriage. The roar of applause and cheers was deafening. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>        Now, Etírna sat on her bed, breathing heavily as the heat left the skin of her back and arm. She pulled the glamour back over, covering old scars from when her father had sent her to dispense with a dragon. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>        She despised when the nightmares interrupted the magic of the glamour. Scars, the ones she could bear, she did not hide. The swirling burn scars down her right arm and half of her back made even her look away. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>         Linniel had heard the Princess shoot up in her bed and knocked on the door. The sun was slowly rising, so it would soon be time to wake anyway to break her fast. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>         "Princess, may I enter?" Linniel asked through the door.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>          "Yes, I'm awake. Please come in." Etírna said as she tossed aside the furs from herself. Linniel picked a robe from the large closet and placed it around Etírna's shoulders.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>          "Would you like to break your fast in your rooms again, your grace?" The maid asked and she shook her head.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>         "I will join my father in the hall." She said, padding towards the door to her room. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>         "Do you not wish to dress?" Linniel asked, almost in shock as her princess called Fàenal to her side.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>          "I do not. I will dress when I return. The gold lace with the white skirts, please have it prepared for my return." She asked kindly. "And… thank you, Linniel. We will leave here at mid-day." She said, looking at the trunks that still sat empty near her hearth.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>           After a half an hour traversing the large palace, Etírna entered the hall, where few sat and broke their fast. Most of their guests left at first light, but Thranduil sat next to her father, chuckling about something she hadn't heard. His eyes found her, still clad in the delicate blue silk nightgown that drug the floor behind her. Her black and blue robe with silver swirling designs left open as she took a glass of warm coffee from a servant and sat across from Thranduil at the long table. She hadn't even brushed her hair. The raven waves still unchallenged by the rough pull. She wasn't the type to worry over her appearance, at least not so early. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>          "Did you not feel the need to dress before joining us for breakfast?" Her father chastised gently.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>           "I did not, </span>
  <em>
    <span>ada</span>
  </em>
  <span>. I find that dressing to break my fast only because we have guests takes longer when I am hungry." She smirked when Thranduil laughed as she sipped the bitter drink. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>          "I do not mind, Ethrandor. Your daughter's candor is refreshing. I too do not usually dress before breaking my fast. I would not ask you to change routine for my sake." Thranduil said, and it seemed to placate Ethrandor. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>         Once Etírna finished a bowl of fresh fruit, two glasses of the new bitter drink that the hobbits had sent, and speaking to the maids and servants that would accompany her to Mirkwood, she was finally lowering herself into the steaming water of her bathing pool. Linniel had just finished washing her hair when there was a knock at the door. Etírna waved Linniel to answer it as she leaned against the pool and closed her eyes.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>         "King Thranduil, Princess Etírna is bathing." She heard the maid exclaim as Serín hurried in with a robe and towel.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>         "I'm patient, I can wait." She heard him say in his low tenor. He watched as two servants took turns placing beautiful gowns and sleeping clothes and boots and cloaks and coats into the trunks that sit on the floor at the end of a giant bed covered in furs and pillows. Her bed chambers were pristine. Everything, even her books, had a very certain place. She had childhood baubles decorating the mantle above her hearth and a painting of a wolf bathed in moonlight hung above as well.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>         "To what do I owe the pleasure, King Thranduil." Her melodic voice said and he turned to see her come out of a bathing chamber in a silk robe, the maid drying her hair.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>          "Your father asked me to see how your travel preparations fared. I see they are going well." He said, motioning to the flurry of servants packing away her things.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>           "I would have had my things packed sooner had I known I would be leaving for Mirkwood before last eve, Thranduil." She said amused, sitting at a dressing table. She crossed her legs as Serín began to brush her hair. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>          "I will have your mount prepared, then." He said, and she chuckled.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>           "You can try, but Beíran may try to eat you. He does not enjoy strangers." She said, chuckling. "I will be but a few minutes. You're more than welcome to wait in my sitting room while I dress." She said, nodding to her human maid, Athenora, to show him where to go.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>         True to her word, ten minutes later she emerged from her bed chambers, a flurry of activity following as her things were brought in from being packed away. Etírna wore a riding gown that stopped at her knees in the front, but billowed behind her. The long sleeves hugged her arms, but the back of the dress was almost non-existent. She paired the gold and white dress with white leggings and eiding boots. Her hair over her right shoulder in a single braid with a simple circlet at her brow. How she looked so different in ten minutes was beyond even Thranduil's imagination. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>         He offered her arm and she guided him to the stables. Thranduil's great Elk bellowed when it's master came into view. Shock and terror filled his face when she entered the stall of a growling white feline. "Fàelan is not a mount, but Beíran is the fastest in Ennor." She said as the snow cat purred under the sweet elvish she spoke as she pet the large feline.</span>
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  <span>        Within an hour, they were headed away from the only home Etírna had known for three thousand years. She stopped and looked back to the palace she was born in, the palace her mother told them of her plans to sail away from only five hundred years past. Where her younger brother Enskír and his new bride would take up the throne when it was their father's turn to sail. </span>
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  <span>        A single tear was all she dared allow fall before she rejoined Thranduil at the head of the entourage they traveled with.</span>
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